{"id":9215,"date":"2023-07-02T15:42:11","date_gmt":"2023-07-02T13:42:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bleisuretraveller.com\/?p=9215"},"modified":"2023-12-07T15:48:50","modified_gmt":"2023-12-07T14:48:50","slug":"first-time-sylt-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bleisuretraveller.com\/en\/first-time-sylt-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Hellas! with laptop"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201eBetween conferences and workshops with \u00adcompanies, I always need time to work on new \u00adconcepts in peace. In the middle of summer, I\u2018m whisked away to Costa Navarino.\u201c Angela Barzen, Entrepreneur, Business Coach & Speaker<\/h4>\n

Pulling myself out and getting creative again – that\u2018s what I do best when I leave my usual environment and let a breath of fresh air blow around my ears. I want to go to the W Costa Navarino in the south\u00adwest of Greece, right on the so called \u201clittle finger\u201c. Eventhough I know that the Marriott W-Hotel concept usually stands for lots of partying and music, I still hope to find quiet places to do my writing. The location of the Costa Navarino in Messenia, in the southwestern Peloponnese, suggests that. I can test it now for seven days.<\/p>\n

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Castle of Methoni<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Costa Navarino has 4 hotels, also the Westin<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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Winds instead of doors<\/h4>\n

I fly from Munich to Kalamata. The city with the largest port in the region has a small airport and is bursting at the seams with several direct connecting flights from Europe. In the past Costa Navarina was a special insider tip for golfers and other guests who wanted to discover the growing eco-\u00adluxery archipelago, today it is special and popular.
\nIt takes 45 minutes by hotel shuttle passing countless olive groves, lemon and orange trees, and finally I am amazed: what a location for the W Costa Navarino right on the beach, with a view over the entire bay. The house itself, like most hotels here, was made with materials from the region. Even in the large W at the entrance, old wooden planks from local fishing boats have been moulded into an iron frame. Throughout the house, breezes flood the interiors, and plants grow on the ceilings. There are no doors except for the hotel room doors, and there is no air conditioning (except in the rooms).
\n\u201cArmed\u201c with my laptop, sunlotion and sunglasses, I searged for undisturbed spots, and I find them: many niches, personal sunbathing islands, terraces above the pool next to the lobby with a view over the entire complex. If I want peace and quiet – I find it and have access to power banks and high-speed internet everywhere, whether in the two restaurants, in the bar, on the beach, in the spa area or, of course, in my room with plenty of space to work and private access to the pool. And if I do have a video call, I find separate rooms that would be suitable for conferences.<\/p>\n

Bays and places: Bleisure Tips<\/h4>\n

But the bay has even more to offer. If you want an original greek mail for lunch: 15 minutes from the hotel, along the beach, I discover Kochili Fish with the best saziki in Costa Navarino. A few metres away is the tiny village of Gialova with bars, restaurants and small shops. For breakfast among the locals, I drive to Pylos, 3 km away, to a caf\u00e9 in the harbour at Central Square with 1,000-year-old oak trees. Early in the morning, the fishermen are still selling last night\u2018s catch from their boats. In the evening, the square is a hive of activity: Backgammon, children playing, heated discus\u00adsions of old Greeks. And 10 minutes away is the castle Bastion Santa Maria.
\nA real sight is the Polylimnio waterfall, 30 km by car from the hotel. It takes about 20 minutes to walk uphill through water-strewn gorges.
\nThe beach club Ammothines \u2013 Four Seas is also a highlight: numerous daybeds, sunbeds in the bay, a bar and a restaurant where fruit and vegetables from the hotel\u2018s own cultivation are prepared. And don\u2018t forget Voidokilia Beach, 11 km from the hotel: the \u201cox-mouth bay\u201c with a white sandy beach in the middle of a nature reserve for sun worshippers.<\/p>\n

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Angela Barzen …<\/h3>\n

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… is still flashed by this spot. Next time she might take her dog with her, as many guests at the hotel do. And then she will stay still longer, because Costa Navarino also offers residences.<\/p>\n

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www.costanavarino.com<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

Photos: \u00a9 Costa Navarino, Angela Barzen<\/p>\n

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